


Hands Speaking Words

by SpicyTomatoSauce



Category: Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Ableism, Ableist Language, Bullying, Deaf Character, Fluff, M/M, deaf Specs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:33:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26642248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpicyTomatoSauce/pseuds/SpicyTomatoSauce
Summary: Specs generally didn't have problems in school.Until he hit high school.Specs is deaf and Romeo is sweet.
Relationships: Romeo/Specs (Newsies)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14





	Hands Speaking Words

**Author's Note:**

> I needed more Deaf!Specs
> 
> TW: Read the tags. A lot of ableism, including bullying and slurs

Specs generally didn't have problems in school. 

Yes, he was deaf. That wasn't an issue, his parents learned to sign and that's how he grew up.

He went to an elementary school for the deaf. So no issues there.

Once he got hearing aids in middle school and learned how to speak (mostly; some words still got him. Like the letter h. Was that even spoken aloud?!), his schooling went much better.

He wasn't fixed or cured by any means; his hearing aids weren't perfect and he still took them out regularly ans the feedback was terrible if a loud noise was right next to him.

The hearing aids were simply a tool. A crutch, of sorts. It didn't heal him, but it would help some.

Anyways.

Specs generally didn't have problems in school.

Until he hit high school.

He went to a public high school and most teachers were willing to accomodate for him; moving him to the front of the class so he could hear or putting the instructions on the board.

The teachers weren't the issue.

Oh no.

The issue was the Delanceys.

The brothers hadn't given Specs a break since they found out he was deaf. Specs didn't entirely understand that-what were they trying to accomplish?

Specs finally found out in junior year, as he walked across the school grounds, next to the small pond.

"Oh my God, shut up!" a girl hissed. "He's coming!"

"What should it matter? Can't fucking hear me anyways, the retarded shit."

Specs kept his head down.

*Keep walking. Don't make eye contact. Don't let them know you hear them. Keep walking. Don't make eye conta-*

Something hit him in the head. A piece of paper. 

Specs couldn't help but whip around in anger.

"What the fuck do you want, Delancey?"

"Oh! Look at that! He's cured." Oscar grinned and Specs had to mentally hold himself back. He wouldn't last two seconds in a fight against Oscar.

"You hit me in the head with a piece of paper, Oscar. I'm not sure what part of that translates into 'can suddenly hear'."

"Who the fuck do you think you are, talking back to me when you couldn't talk for half your life?" Oscar sneered.

"Who the fuck do you think you are, talking like that to me when you can't spell half the words you just said?" A weak response and he knew it, but it was all he had.

"And you can? Didn't you learn to read in 6th grade too?"

Specs' hearing, while partially improved, didn't manage to pick up the giggling of the girl from before, who had moved behind him.

Besides, he was much too focused on Oscar to notice.

"Even if I did, would've learned before yo-"

A loud screeching noise ensued as the girl yanked his hearing aids out.

Specs immediately clamped his hands over his ears, trying to stop the ringing.

When the noise had subsided, he realized the girl and Oscar were each holding a hearing aid over the water.

"Wait-no...please..." Specs started forward, but thought better of it. "Please..."

"What made you think you could come to a normal school? For normal people?" Oscar asked sarcastically.

Specs became very aware of the other Delancey brother behind him.

"I-I..." Specs' sentence died as Morris laughed.

"Normal isn't a word for him, Oscar!" he called, kicking the back of Specs' knees harshly. All three laughed again as Specs collapsed. "He can't even fucking hear you, now!"

"Please, just give them back!" Specs begged, trying to get up. He caught the look Morris gave him and decided to stay where he was.

He saw the girl and Oscar discuss for a moment before Oscar gave Specs a look. He motioned between himself and the girl and all of Specs' hope died.

He knew exactly what they wanted him to do.

"...left," he whispered finally, on the verge of tears. Oscar smirked and dropped the hearing aid he was holding into to albeit shallow water.

*Why isn't there a teacher here? Why hasn't anyone stopped this? Why why why why why, why me?*

Specs watched as the girl moved to throw the hearing aid she was holding. He cringed and looked away, letting the tears spill over and down his cheeks.

Nothing.

A hand touched his shoulder and he flinched violently, looking up. He locked eyes with another boy, holding his hand out.

In the boy's hand were two hearing aids, one dripping wet.

Specs tentatively took the hearing aids and signed a shaky thank you before realizing the stranger wouldn't know what he said.

"Thank you..." he whispered.

"You're welcome. Sorry about the wet one, but I figure we can always try rice, right?" the stranger answered in fluent sign language.

Not a single mistake. Not a single stutter or pause. Specs stared.

"You sign?" he responded finally. The other boy smiled and appeared to laugh. Specs suddenly wanted nothing more than for his hearing aids to be working so he could hear that laugh.

"Yes," the stranger answered. "My name is R-O-M-E-O. Yours?"

Specs swallowed thickly before signing in return. "S-P-E-N-C-E-R. But everyone calls me S-P-E-C-S."

"Nice to meet you. Now, I got a teacher to deal with the asshats, so now all we need is to fix...that." Romeo gestured to the hearing aids.

Specs gave Romeo a tiny smile and adjusted his glasses. "Thank you," he signed again. A question struck him. "How do you know sign language?"

Romeo blushed. "Well..." His hands hesitated in the air for a while before he continued. "I learned it so I could talk to you."

"What?" Specs asked before he could stop himself. Again, Specs wanted to hear the laugh that followed his question.

"I wanted to talk to the cute deaf boy I saw in the hallways, so...I took some classes. Read some books." Romeo let his hands drop after that.

Specs' eyes widened and he adjusted his glasses again. "Oh...thank you..."

Romeo smiled. "I'll drive you home," he offered. "We can see if rice will help the hearing aid."

Specs nodded and very willingly went with Romeo to his car.

{}{}{}{}{}{}

"So? Are they working?"

"Yeah, mostly."

A laugh. "Good!"

Hands adjusting glasses. Hands offering. Hands holding his. Hands blowing kisses.

Hands speaking words

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!!
> 
> Comments fuel my soul!!


End file.
